A pub - reputedly the oldest in Wales - is to re-open as a 90 seat restaurant.

Former restaurant manager Scott Roberts has taken on the lease of Ty Mawr in Gwyddelwern, Corwen, parts of which date back to 1081.

Scott, originally from Llandudno in North Wales, plans to create a 90-seat restaurant in the historic two-storey building.

Ty Mawr – which sits on the popular holiday route of the A494 between Ruthin and Bala – was let to Scott by the specialist licensed and leisure division of the North West office of real estate advisors Colliers International in Manchester.

It is owned by the pension fund of an individual and has been closed in recent years.

Now the restaurant on the upper floor of the Grade II listed building will serve locally sourced produce prepared by award-winning chefs.

Scott’s plans for downstairs are for a community bar with log fire.

During his time in Llandudno, Scott was a retained firefighter and a volunteer for the British Search and Rescue Dogs Team, a charity disaster rescue team in North Wales which involved him flying to disaster areas in Algeria and Iran.

He moved to Tenerife in 2005 and after spells in cocktail and hotel bars joined Venture Restaurants Group owned by Singapore real estate entrepreneur Robert NG, starting as a runner and progressing to being a waiter, assistant manager and then manager in a range of restaurants spanning Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Thai and gourmet British cuisine.

In 2012 he was charged with opening a new restaurant called Infuschia in Puerto Banus, Marbella and returned to the UK in December 2013.

He said: “I returned to the UK in search of a new challenge and my vision of creating a modern gastro pub in a property dating back to the 11th century and literally steeped in history is certainly that. When I became aware of Ty Mawr through Colliers International it was too good a chance to turn down.”

Colin Siebert, director, licensed and leisure at the North West office of Colliers International in Manchester, secured the letting of Ty Mawr, and said: “Scott is an experienced and successful operator in the restaurant sector and his ambitious plans will mark yet another chapter in the incredible life of this 1,000 year old building.”

Ty Mawr - history

It was originally a priest house where pilgrims and other travellers were offered refuge and lodging by local clergymen.

Over the centuries, the building was extended and the main structure standing today dates from between 1386 and 1572 AD.

After being modernised in 1870, Ty Mawr resembled a large Victorian inn with pebbledash and mortar concealing its original and historic features and character.

Gavin Morgan acquired the property in 1999 when it was known as the Rose & Crown and undertook extensive renovation to return it to its former glory. During renovation he discovered a “jetton” or gaming token dating from 1521 tucked into a crack in the beam above the main fireplace.

The jetton is identical to six found on Henry VIII’s flagship Mary Rose when she was raised from the seabed off Portsmouth.